Hallelujah! In a year of seemingly endless bipartisan divide, we have been gifted—just in time for Christmas—a comprehensive bipartisan criminal justice reform bill. Is this a true Christmas miracle? The government may not be able to decide where to come up with $5 billion for a border wall and just shut down, but it has…
A tale of two judges perceived to be polar opposites. Sonya Sotomayor—the liberal Democratic nominee of the Obama administration and Neil Gorsuch—the conservative republican nominee of the Trump administration do not seem like likely allies. When most of us envision Supreme Court justices hotly debating issues, we imagine a split largely down party lines. After…
Thanksgiving is a day for us to take stock of all the people and circumstances we can be grateful for in our day-to-day lives while simultaneously kicking off the holiday season (although it seems the holiday season now starts before Halloween, according to various retailers, who shall remain unnamed). To help you celebrate this year…
Veterans Day is always an important day for us here at the office. We strongly advocated for a Veterans court in Scottsdale modeled after the highly effective and successful Phoenix Veterans Court. We have written extensively on the unique challenges veterans face and how services for veterans can be grossly inadequate. When veterans do not…
It’s that magical time of year again, a bit of mischief before the season of thanks and gift-giving officially begins. Halloween is a favorite of adults and children alike and provides an entire season of tantalizing fun should one choose to indulge. Halloween as we know it comes from the ancient Celtic tradition festival of…
If you have not been living under a rock and are on at least one social media platform, you should remember October 15, 2017—a little over a year ago, where two small words flooded your newsfeed. #MeToo. Many responded with their own stories of sexual harassment and assault, and there seemed to be an outpouring…
The latest victim of use of force by the Mesa PD is not who—or what—you might think. It seems that not even animals are safe from the growing number of reports of excessive force against Mesa. On September 14, 2018, Mesa PD got a call regarding a neighbor’s barking dog—why police were called over a…
Are you out grabbing the last package of brats? Or restocking the almost empty beer fridge? How about trying to find some red, white, and blue water balloons for the kids this Fourth of July? You, my friends, are not alone! I know this because I’m about to walk into Safeway, and I’m dreading the…
School is out, the snowbirds have once again migrated north, and the mass exodus to Southern California is looming—must be Memorial Day! We Phoenicians bid a final goodbye to the possibility of 80 degree days and the beginning of the glorious summer months full of barbeques, pool parties, and vacations to help forget about melting…
Does anyone really need an excuse to eat tacos? Nope. I’ll be eating tacos, anyway, but go ahead, I’m listening! Today is Cinco de Mayo—not to be confused with Mexico’s Independence Day (that’s on September 16). May 5 celebrates a victory for the underdogs, a day when people fought for themselves, their families, and their…
